Five men were on Friday charged with attempted robbery at Republic Bank’s, Water Street branch two Tuesdays ago.
The men appeared before Chief Magistrate, Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court amid heavy police guard.
Those charged are Jamal Haynes, Keron Saunders, Gladstone George, Anfernee Blackman, and Shawn Grimmond.

Grimmond and Haynes were employed by Republic Bank at the time of the robbery. Haynes was shot to his legs following the robbery attempt. He pleaded guilty to several charges including firearm and ammunition possession. He was sentenced to six years imprisonment and remanded on two charges. The other accused were all remanded to prison.
George and Blackman are constables attached to the Guyana Police Force. The two allegedly aided the robbery attempt by providing firearms.
It was reported that on the morning of July 4, three armed men entered Republic Bank’s, Water Street Branch before it was opened to the public.

Haynes and his gang members, Elton Wray and Saunders had reportedly planned on getting their hands on the night’s deposits since it was a three-day weekend and companies would have deposited millions of dollars in cash.
Wray, a 25-year-old, China-trained agronomist who was employed at the National Agriculture Research Extension Institute (NAREI), was shot in the chest during the robbery. He died the same day while receiving medical attention.

The perpetrators wore masks, gloves and carried handguns and opened fire on the RBL personnel inside the building. Professional Guard Service security personnel, who were on site, immediately raised an alarm and an armed response teams proceeded to the location.
The teams assessed the situation and took up defensive positions with their police counterparts as the perpetrators were pursued.